3M Scanner Technology Phoenix, AZ

When a tooth has had a significant amount of work done, or if it has decayed to the point that its structural integrity has been compromised, having a crown placed is often a viable option for restoration. A traditional crown is a custom-made cap, made in a dental laboratory, that fits over your existing tooth. We now offer same-day crowns which, as the name implies, are made in our office and fitted on your tooth all in one visit! Same-day crowns are made possible thanks to computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) with the 3M Scanner.

Traditional Dental Crown Procedure

When a tooth is not structurally strong enough to continue performing the functions required of it, we will place a crown. For a traditional crown, we take an impression of the tooth to send to a dental lab which will fabricate your new crown. The dental lab will construct an exact match of the tooth we are replacing. This will take two to three weeks.

After we have made an impression of your tooth, it will then be prepared to receive the crown. During preparation we remove any fillings or decay present in the tooth and shape it to accept the crown. After preparation, a temporary crown is placed on your tooth and secured. The temporary crown will act exactly as your normal tooth would until your next appointment. At your next appointment, we will replace the temporary crown with the permanent crown using a long-lasting adhesive.

For those who don't want to make two trips to see us, we offer same-day crowns.

Same-Day Crown Procedure

The process for receiving a same-day crown is very similar to the process for receiving a traditional crown but it is crafted in our office as soon as we take the impression of your tooth. The method for taking an impression of your teeth is different, in that instead of taking a putty mold of your tooth, we take a digital impression of it. This is accomplished by dusting your tooth with a reflective powder and scanning it with a handheld wand. Using this method we get an accurate 3D model of your tooth with the 3M Scanner which we use to construct the same-day crown.

The construction of a same-day crown is done in our office. It is done by a machine that uses the 3D image of your tooth to carve a piece of ceramic material into the exact shape of your tooth. The color of the crown is closely matched to your surrounding teeth and is finished by staining and glazing it to ensure a great aesthetic and functional fit. The function and lifetime of traditional and same-day crowns are exactly the same. This means that the only trade-off you make when you receive a same-day crown as opposed to a traditional crown is not having to come back to our office!

If you have any questions about crowns or same-day crowns, please give our office a call at (602) 789-3799.